Home Europe Czech Republic ups Caesar howitzer order

Czech Republic ups Caesar howitzer order

More Caesar howitzers for Czech Army
Photo: Nexter

The Czech Republic has decided to boost the 52 Caesar self-propelled howitzers on order from France by 10 more units.

On December 14, Czech defense ministry representatives signed a contract modification with the vice president of the French company Nexter Systems, which is supplying the howitzers.

The value of the additional order is 1.77 billion Czech koruna (approx. USD77M), bringing the total value of the Caesar purchase to CZK 10.3 billion (USD437M).

The Czech defense ministry expects the howitzers to be delivered to the army by the end of 2026, replacing the Dana howitzers which have been in service for more than forty years.

The Dana howitzers use the NATO-incompatible 152 mm caliber and at 20 kilometers, have only half the range of the Caesar, whose guns gun can reach targets at distances of up to 40 km.

The defense ministry said the purchase was not only a response to the deteriorating security situation, but also a response to the need for accelerated modernization.

According to the defense ministry, the ammunition for the Caesar howitzers would be supplied under a separate contract by Czech company STV Group.

“By purchasing these guns, we are taking another step towards the much-needed modernization of our military and reducing the internal debt we still have with the military. I am very happy that by concluding the contract modification, we also managed to reserve capacity for the Czech Republic in production lines that are hopelessly busy for the next few years due to the war in Ukraine,” said defense minister Jana Černochová at the signing of the agreement.